Chapter 172

Everything happened too fast!

The Blood Stupa that rushed forward seemed not to have expected that there would be such a shameless person on their side, and its figure froze slightly.

"Blood General, this is a matter of life and death, don't worry about so much for now!"

"How can the General stand by and watch His Highness die in battle on Mount Ziyang?"

"Blood General, quickly join forces with us three and kill that brat!"

Seeing the Blood Stupa hesitate, the three charged forward while shouting!

The Blood Stupa was only slightly stunned, then realized that now was not the time to discuss righteousness, Fang Xu's strength was too great, and if he died in single combat, none of the remaining people on their side would be his match.

With the nature of Crown Prince Li Xingyan, he would certainly not flee this time, and would ultimately die miserably at Fang Xu's hands.

The heart of loyalty to the sovereign made the Blood Stupa compromise, and immediately he grasped his long blade and followed the three Commandants of the Surveillance Bureau as they charged toward Fang Xu!

On the other side, Old Ape had been leisurely watching Fang Xu and the Blood Stupa fight, thinking that with his own deterrence, the other side wouldn't dare to seek death.

He never expected that these three Commandants of the Surveillance Bureau would actually be so bold and shameless!

Seeing the three sharp blades coming to block his path to rescue, Old Ape flew into a rage!

Roar!

After that roar, he directly revealed his true form!

The towering demon ape, two zhang tall, appeared, and its terrifying aura directly shattered the three blades!

Old Ape's figure suddenly leapt up, charging directly toward the Blood Stupa and the four others!

"Uncle Yuan, I'll handle this myself!"

Having reached their level of cultivation, ordinary concealment techniques could not possibly hide from several people.

The terrifying pressure from behind and above made all four people startled simultaneously!

A staff-shadow that pierced heaven and earth descended from the sky; before the staff-shadow even reached them, its aura had already locked onto the four!

It was precisely to let these people give Fang Xu practice.

The towering figure, two zhang high, directly surged into Li Xingyan and the group of Martial Sovereigns behind him!

Those Martial Sovereigns who usually loomed high and mighty, facing Old Ape now, were like chicks, easily handled by him at will!

A horizontal sweep, like a purple-black fire dragon, swept toward the three!

But the anger in his heart needed to be vented, so Old Ape directly charged toward Li Xingyan and the others!

As previously agreed, as long as they did not join forces to surround him, he would not intervene.

Gradually, the three lost all movement, their bodies slowly burning to ash.

The Blood Stupa's expression stiffened; he had still wanted to argue that the Surveillance Bureau's three acting was not his idea, but upon recalling that after the Surveillance Bureau's three attacked, he too had continued to assault Fang Xu.

The Surveillance Bureau's three failed to dodge in time, and were directly struck by the fire dragon on their bodies; the purple-black flames, like a bone-deep ulcer, quickly clung to them!

Especially the Surveillance Bureau's three, who were all assassination experts, extremely sensitive to aura detection; if what they had just shattered together was a false body, they would certainly have noticed.

The Blood Stupa had wanted to go rescue, but seeing the strange purple-black flames, he dared not touch the three's bodies for a moment.

Boom!

The earth-shaking explosion rang out, and the three's figures were directly smashed underground by Fang Xu's staff!

Fortunately, the three were all Martial Sovereign Seventh Realm in strength, so facing Fang Xu's staff, they were not directly pulped into meat.

The terrifying pressure made the four feel as if a mountain of ten thousand jin were pressing down on them, wanting to dodge but unable to lift their feet!

"It's a false body!"

At this moment, after Old Ape revealed his true form, due to Fang Xu's intervention, he did not kill toward this side.

On the other side, the Blood Stupa, fleeing in disarray, looked in horror at the terrifying effect of Fang Xu's staff, and was even more astonished at how Fang Xu had silently appeared behind them!

And what exactly was the deal with that false body that the four had jointly shattered earlier?

Looking toward the direction where Fang Xu was fiercely battling the Blood Stupa, then looking toward where Old Ape was brutally massacring the crowd, the three exchanged glances and directly charged toward Fang Xu's back!

"You scum who only know sneak attacks, still want to come again?" Fang Xu struck the Blood Stupa flying with one staff, his form flashed, and he met the charging three, directly delivering a horizontal sweep!

Purple-black flames burned on the black iron staff!

The shamelessness of the Surveillance Bureau's three thoroughly enraged him.

Purple flames scorched the flesh, black divine fire scorched the soul!

The three instantly experienced the dual agony of flesh and soul!

A piercing wail rang out!

"Drink!"

Many people at this moment secretly cursed the Surveillance Bureau's three.

Old Ape would not indulge them.

After dealing with the three, Fang Xu faced the Blood Stupa directly, and no longer held back.

Fang Xu shouted loudly.

Under the terrifying pressure of the staff-shadow, his entire killing intent suddenly erupted, and relying on years of accumulated killing intent, he finally broke free from this pressure at the critical moment, barely dodging this strike!

The Surveillance Bureau's three did not have such good fortune.

A hint of alarm appeared on the faces of the four!

"Not good!"

Fang Xu naturally did not know what the Blood Stupa was thinking now, holding the black iron staff in his hand, he walked step by step toward the Blood Stupa.

The three's killing moves, together with the Blood Stupa's long blade, all struck the body of the Yang Fish!

But the power of this staff was ultimately still too terrifying; the three, upon being smashed into the ground, had who knows how many bones broken throughout their bodies.

Does this not also represent my approval of the three's shameless conduct?

Ashamed in his heart, he dared not meet Fang Xu's gaze, and his eyes turned toward the other side.

Three people attacked and tried to kill him, but it was foolish of them to be tricked by a fake body—many Martial Lords wondered how the three of them had become the Chief Justiciars of the Inspection Bureau.

"Behind you!"

The Blood Stupa truly lives up to being the strongest among the four!

If they hadn't acted on their own initiative and secretly gone to ambush Fang Xu, they wouldn't have provoked this old ape!

Boom!

The full-powered strike of three Martial Lords of the Seventh Realm skilled in assassination, combined with the Blood Stupa's earth-shattering move, directly shattered Fang Xu's Yang Fish form!

But the imagined scene of flesh and blood flying everywhere did not occur!

The old ape unleashed a massacre on this side, and Fang Xu once again fought alongside the Blood Stupa!

Boom!

As the two fought fiercely, the three Inspection Bureau members who had been smashed into the ground by one of its strikes also burst out from the earth at this moment!

Facing the four rushing in, his figure suddenly flickered, and in the next instant, the Yin-Yang Wandering Fish surged forth!

The Yang Fish form attracted the attention of everyone present, including the Blood Stupa!

The three Justiciars of the Inspection Bureau had already gathered their strength, preparing to kill him in one strike!

"I originally thought you were a man of integrity, but I never expected……" Fang Xu's face showed a hint of mockery.

The old ape's massive palm pressed against the sword light of a Third Realm Martial Lord, directly smashing him into a pile of minced meat!

Immediately followed by another punch swung out, sending a Martial Lord preparing a sneak attack flying, his body violently slamming into a distant cliff!

Like a tiger entering a flock of sheep, after the old ape charged in, these people finally understood what a great demon was!

The three of them looked utterly disheveled, covered in dust and dirt, with bloodstains all over their bodies.

But now, the three Inspection Bureau members disregarded dignity, secretly ambushing Fang Xu—let alone that, they all three attacked together.

With the Xuan Shui Dao Foundation plus the Xuan Shui Soul, after he used the Divine Blaze Flames to burn to death three Seventh Realm Martial Lords, his soul power quickly recovered.

In his eyes, two streaks of purple-black flames flickered.

Seeing this, the Blood Stupa instinctively sensed a deadly threat!

Boom!

The killing intent on his body's surface instantly condensed!

Pfft!

In the next moment, the surface of those seemingly tangible killing intents was directly covered by purple-black flames!

The Blood Stupa was horrified, silently thinking, fortunately my reaction was swift, otherwise this strange purple-black flame would probably have fallen on me!

Seeing the killing intent on his body surface rapidly scorched by purple-black flames, the Blood Stupa immediately wanted to withdraw the killing intent and extinguish this flame.

But in the next moment, his eyes showed shock!

The purple-black flames could not be dispelled!

Even after I dispersed my killing intent, these purple-black flames were actually burning in midair, and seemed to have already burned into my sea of consciousness!

This flame can burn the soul!

At this moment, the Blood Stupa finally understood why, when the three Inspection Bureau members were scorched by the purple-black flames earlier, they had suffered immensely!

The pain of the soul is far more agonizing than physical pain!

Feeling his soul in the sea of consciousness wrapped by the purple-black flames, the Blood Stupa despaired.

Intense pain came simultaneously from his flesh and soul.

Even the Blood Stupa, a veteran of countless battles with unyielding will, could no longer endure it at this moment!

"Ugh ah!"

The agonized howl rang out, and large amounts of purple-black flames gushed from the Blood Stupa's opened mouth!

Immediately after, his nostrils, eyes, ears……

These purple-black flames, like the Nine Netherworld Flames rising from the depths of hell, rapidly scorched his body and soul!

Gradually, the Blood Stupa's form lost vitality and then turned into flying ash!

【Your friend Yin Tianhe has died. As a friend, you may randomly inherit any one of Yin Tianhe's three legacies!】

A virtual panel suddenly popped up before him.

Fang Xu looked toward the not-so-distant battlefield; the old ape revealed his true form and slaughtered in all directions.

Dozens of Martial Lords from the major powers of Yu State had by now been nearly wiped out by him.

Those still alive were merely Li Xingyan and a few other Martial Lords of the Sixth Realm and above; the rest had mostly turned into pools of blood on the ground.

At that moment, the old ape's punch sent a burly bald martial artist flying, and Fang Xu's face directly triggered the virtual panel.

Clearly, this person was Yin Tianhe of Ji Province.

After glancing at Yin Tianhe's three legacies, Fang Xu's face showed a strange expression.

Legacy One: 【Purple Legacy·Feng Shui Secret Manual】Inheritance carries high risk; Feng Shui techniques are forbidden arts, and those who secretly cultivate them find it hard to escape the Three Calamities and Six Misfortunes. The 【Feng Shui Secret Manual】is easy to obtain, but cultivation is not advised.

Legacy Two: 【White Legacy·Strength Attribute 180 Points】Inheritance carries no risk, but requires touching Yin Tianhe's corpse to obtain.

Legacy Three: 【White Legacy·Agility Attribute 80 Points】Inheritance carries no risk, but requires touching Yin Tianhe's corpse to obtain.

Will this 【Feng Shui Secret Manual】be related to my grandfather?

Upon seeing Yin Tianhe's first legacy, Fang Xu immediately thought of his grandfather.

According to the notes left by his grandfather, his ancestral home seems to be Ji Province.

His grandfather was also a Feng Shui master, and this Yin Tianhe is from Ji Province and possesses the 【Feng Shui Secret Manual】—they must have some connection.

But before he could figure it out, another virtual panel popped up before him.

【Your friend Jiang Heping has died. As a friend, you may randomly inherit any one of Jiang Heping's three legacies!】

Legacy One: 【White Legacy·Vitality Attribute 120 Points】Inheritance carries no risk, but requires touching Jiang Heping's corpse to obtain.

Inheritance Two: 【Grey Inheritance·Strength Attribute 90 Points】 Inheritance carries no risk, but requires touching Jiang Heping's corpse to obtain.

Inheritance Three: 【Unknown Quality·Unnamed Sea Chart】 Inheritance carries no risk, the unnamed sea chart was obtained by Jiang Heping from a fisherman in Lizhou, hesitating as the sea area marked on the chart has no specific reference points, and Jiang Heping has never gone to explore it.

Dead!

Jiang Heping and Yin Tianhe are both dead!

At this moment, in the depths of the sea of consciousness, the friend list, aside from Li Xun and Lü Shengren, only Li Cangwu and the Ju Yuan of Ming Hun Dao remain.

But since seeing Li Xun once in Canghai City back then, Fang Xu has not seen Li Xun again.

But now Li Xun's life value has already recovered to 40%!

Looking at the four people on the friend list, Fang Xu shook his head.

This guy Li Xun, occupying my friend list for years, really leaves me helpless.

Setting aside Li Xun's matter, he clicked the inheritance button.

Yin Tianhe and Jiang Heping's inheritances each rolled, and then their inheritances gradually settled.

【Congratulations on obtaining Inheritance One!】

【The Feng Shui Secret Canon is currently in the underground secret room of Yin Tianhe's home.】

【Congratulations on obtaining Inheritance Three!】

【The unknown sea chart is in Jiang Heping's Qiankun bag.】

Qiankun bag?

Seeing this, Fang Xu felt a surge of joy.

I never expected Jiang Heping to actually still have a Qiankun bag!

On the field, the old ape has already slaughtered all the Martial Sovereigns cleanly, blood flowing horizontally before the Ziyang Mountain sect gate, only Li Xingyan and his daughter remain.

At this moment, Li Xingyan is in a sorry state, hair disheveled, mouth and body covered in large amounts of bloodstains, the long sword in his hand reduced to half a blade.

Li Lingxiang stands behind him, supporting his swaying, on-the-verge-of-collapse body.

Fang Xu slowly walked forward and looked at Li Xingyan, saying: "Your Highness, do you still insist on holding on?"

At this moment, the old ape has also restored his human form, a pair of eyes fixedly staring at Li Xingyan, ready at any moment to strike and slay him.

"Hah... cough cough..."

Li Xingyan showed a miserable smile on his face, then looked toward Fang Xu and said: "As the Grand Prince of Yu State, I came this time with no intention of returning alive."

Fang Xu shook his head and said: "People are dead, Your Highness need not continue the act."

Li Xingyan's face stiffened slightly, then he gave a bitter smile and said: "You think I'm acting?"

He broke free from Li Lingxiang's support, staggered forward to Fang Xu, and whispered: "I am acting under imperial decree to seek death..."

Hearing this, Fang Xu frowned slightly: "Your Highness, what do you mean by this?"

Li Xingyan sighed softly: "I regret it; perhaps I should not have involved myself in this matter back then, nor should I have made promises to them in the name of the imperial family."

"I should have understood, with Seventh Brother's shrewdness, the reason he didn't get involved in your affairs back then was likely because he foresaw today's outcome."

Fang Xu said nothing.

The outcome of this matter, Seventh Prince Li Xingchao, must have long been foreseen by him.

Otherwise, how could he have allowed this opportunity to win people's hearts to fall into Li Xingyan's hands?

"The imperial family's dignity cannot be lost; the emperor letting me come alone has already made his stance clear."

"With my life, I will fulfill the promise I made back then."

"Fang Xu, kill me, but please spare Lingxiang; she has nothing to do with this matter."

Li Xingyan turned his head to look at Li Lingxiang not far behind him.

Fang Xu shook his head, turned, and came to Jiang Heping's corpse, rummaging through it, then found his Qiankun bag from a hidden layer in the clothing.

Afterwards, he waved his hand at the Ghost Face Army behind him, signaling them to clean up the battlefield, move all the treasures of the Ziyang Sect, and together with the old ape, directly leave Ziyang Mountain.

Whether to kill Li Xingyan or not is now meaningless.

This land of Yu State, I will leave it soon; resolving the old grudges is merely to completely eliminate the obsession in my heart, so that my thoughts may become unobstructed.

Gazing at Fang Xu's departing back, Li Xingyan's face was full of bitterness.

He couldn't help but think back to when the major clans united to hunt down Fang Xu; if the royal family had merely extended a helping hand, even just stepped forward to stop the clans and powers, today's situation would not have occurred.

Turning his head to glance at the broken limbs and remains behind him, Li Xingyan shook his head: "Lingxiang, let's go."

……

Jizhou.

After leaving Ziyang Mountain, Fang Xu and the old ape led three thousand Ghost Face Army directly to Jizhou.

Whether because of Tuoba Xiong's inheritance or Yin Tianhe's inheritance, Jizhou is a place he must visit.

The news of the great battle at Ziyang Mountain has not yet fully spread; when Fang Xu and his group arrived in Jizhou, neither the Tuoba family nor the Yin family knew their patriarch had already died in battle at Ziyang Mountain.

Wanting to enter the two families to retrieve their inheritances, there is no doubt another great battle is still needed.

After slaying the Martial Sovereign powerhouses of the Tuoba and Yin families, Fang Xu successfully obtained their inheritances and, as a bonus, cleaned clean the treasures accumulated by both families over the years.

In the Tuoba family residence, Fang Xu had the Ghost Face Army gather the remaining Tuoba clansmen together.

Originally, he had no intention of making things difficult for these Tuoba people, but when he saw the Xuanyu Blood Gold, he changed his mind.

Xuanyu Blood Gold is an extraordinarily strange refining material, and within the Xuanyu Blood Gold, Fang Xu also felt a peculiar energy.

Although he has not yet figured out what this peculiar energy is, intuitively, this material should be very precious.

In the entire Great Yu, only Jizhou has this Xuanyu Blood Gold vein, and only the Tuoba family possesses the method to refine Xuanyu Blood Gold; Fang Xu wants to obtain this refining method from the Tuoba family disciples.

Scanning his gaze over the Tuoba family disciples, Fang Xu slowly opened his mouth: "Since I spared your lives, you should know what I want."

The Tuoba family disciples looked at each other, and for a moment, no one spoke.

Fang Xu stood up and said: "Rest assured, I only want Xuanyu Blood Gold; as long as you can continue to refine Xuanyu Blood Gold for me, I can guarantee, I will absolutely not harm your lives."

"Give you three days to consider."

Saying that, he waved his hand, ordering the Ghost-faced Army to take these Tuoba clan disciples away.

Late at night, Fang Xu was studying that damaged Heavenly Que Tower when a Ghost-faced Army soldier suddenly came to report.

"Leader, a Martial Saint powerhouse says he wants to see you."

Martial Saint?

Fang Xu frowned: "What is the visitor's name?"

This Ghost-faced Army soldier shook his head: "The other party didn't say, but I detected a strong blood-slaughter aura on him, likely from the military."

From the military, blood-slaughter aura, Martial Saint...

"Let him in."

The Ghost-faced Army soldier clasped his hands and escorted the person inside.

Seeing the visitor, Fang Xu smiled.

"Killing General, long time no see."

The visitor was indeed Sha Tianrui, whom he had met a few times before.

Sha Tianrui slightly clasped his hands and said: "Young Hero Fang, people often say, after parting for three days, one should look at a person with new eyes."

"Sha, every time I see Young Hero Fang, I must look at him with new eyes."

Fang Xu gave a light smile, gesturing for Sha Tianrui to sit and talk.

After they sat down, Fang Xu curiously asked: "General Sha, why did you come to visit so late at night?"

Sha Tianrui spoke unhurriedly: "Young Hero Fang, do you still remember our agreement at Tilan Mountain back then?"

Fang Xu was stunned for a moment, then recalled that back then, while facing the encirclement and suppression by various major forces at the ruins of Tilan Mountain, he had received Sha Tianrui's help and thus managed to escape the ruins.

For this matter, he had once promised to owe Sha Tianrui a favor.

It seems Sha Tianrui's late-night visit today is to call in that old favor.

"Fang Xu naturally remembers."

He certainly wouldn't renege on the debt, but right now he just doesn't understand what Sha Tianrui wants to use this favor for.

"Young Hero Fang, Sha came today precisely to exchange that old favor for a person." Sha Tianrui spoke.

Fang Xu curiously asked: "Is it someone from the Tuoba clan?"

He didn't know Sha Tianrui still had any connection with the Tuoba clan.

If the person Sha Tianrui wants to exchange for has already been killed by me, then this matter would be awkward.

"It is, but not entirely."

"This person is Tuoba Xiong's daughter-in-law, the Yan Yang Princess of the Yu State."

Yan Yang Princess?

Fang Xu recalled in his mind, but was also unsure whether this Yan Yang Princess was still alive.

"General Sha, please wait a moment. Since coming to Ji Province, I have slain many of the Tuoba clan, and I am also unsure whether this Yan Yang Princess is still alive."

"Come here!"

Fang Xu shouted, and a Ghost-faced Army soldier hurriedly ran in.

"Leader!"

"Go to the place where the Tuoba clan members are detained and ask whether the Yan Yang Princess is still alive."

"If she is alive, please bring the Princess here."

That Ghost-faced Army soldier clasped his hands: "Yes!"

After the soldier left, Sha Tianrui clasped his hands toward Fang Xu: "Thank you, Young Hero Fang."

Fang Xu waved his hand: "General, you're too polite."

Noticing that hard-to-conceal excitement in Sha Tianrui's eyes, Fang Xu suddenly smiled: "General and the Yan Yang Princess..."

Sha Tianrui's old face turned red, and he gave an embarrassed smile.

This behavior confirmed Fang Xu's guess.

"General, the Yan Yang Princess is the widow of the Tuoba clan and also a princess of the Yu State; even though the Tuoba clan is gone now, the Yu Emperor, for the sake of the empire's dignity, will not easily agree to your union."

Sha Tianrui's expression turned solemn as he nodded: "This point, Sha has already thought it through."

"Back then, Sha lacked the power, watching helplessly as Yan Yang married someone he didn't like, suffering alone for half his life."

"Now, Sha no longer wants to consider so much."

"Even if everyone in the world opposes it, Sha doesn't care."

"Tianrui?"

As his words fell, a voice laced with surprise suddenly came from outside the hall, followed quickly by a figure rushing toward Sha Tianrui!

Sha Tianrui hurriedly stood up, looking at the person coming toward him, his face full of excitement, then he embraced them tightly.

"Yan Yang..."

"Tianrui... really you?"

The Yan Yang Princess looked up, somewhat incredulously at the current Sha Tianrui.

"It's me." Like iron bones with tender feelings, although Sha Tianrui wore armor, his eyes were full of affection.

"Cough cough!"

Seeing the two immersed in the joy of reunion, Fang Xu, though reluctant, ultimately interrupted them.

Only then did Sha Tianrui and the Yan Yang Princess notice there was still an outsider present.

"General Sha, what are your plans next?"

Sha Tianrui glanced at the Yan Yang Princess beside him, pondered for a moment, and said: "Go to Zhongzhou, seek the Emperor's permission for marriage."

No!

As soon as he finished speaking, the Princess of Yan Yang immediately stopped him: "Your father will kill you!"

As the daughter of Li Cangwu, the Princess of Yan Yang clearly understands her father's nature; she knows that if Tian Rui goes to Zhongzhou to propose marriage at this time, Li Cangwu, who cares about face, will surely kill him!

After all, the Princess of Yan Yang is a princess of Yu State; even if the Tuoba family is destroyed and forgotten, she can only remain a widow, and Li Cangwu will never allow her to marry Tian Rui!

"Yan Yang, then come with me." Looking at the Princess of Yan Yang, Tian Rui said: "Let us leave Yu State and go to a place where no one knows us."

Since ancient times, heroes have found it hard to pass the beauty's gate.

At this moment, for love, Tian Rui has already set aside his position in the army and is willing to elope with the Princess of Yan Yang.

Seeing this, Fang Xu felt a slight stir in his heart and said: "General Sha, I have a suggestion."

Upon hearing this, Tian Rui looked toward Fang Xu and said: "Young Hero Fang, please speak."

Fang Xu glanced at the Princess of Yan Yang, then at Tian Rui, and said: "To be frank, I currently have a unit of Ghost Face Army in my hands, numbering only three thousand."

"However, I do not understand the art of deploying troops and formations; if the General does not disdain it, Fang Xu wishes to ask the General to take command of the Ghost Face Army and follow me to the Immortal Isle."

Ghost Face Army!?

Tian Rui's face showed a hint of surprise: "Is that not the legendary Ghost Face Army of Yu Prefecture?"

Fang Xu nodded: "Exactly."

Tian Rui's face showed a hint of excitement: "It is said that the Ghost Face Army has been passed down since ancient times, each generation numbering three thousand."

"They were once the personal guards of the ancient Human Emperor, possessing formidable strength!"

"Those who cultivate the Ghost Face become warriors who can match ten; I never thought this army actually existed!"

"Young Hero Fang, do you truly entrust this Ghost Face Army to me?"

Fang Xu gave a faint smile: "A fine horse deserves a fine saddle; a good army naturally needs a good commander."

"In my hands, the Ghost Face Army is merely a scattered group of martial artists; only by entrusting it to a commander like the General, skilled in the use of troops, can its true function be realized."

Tian Rui nodded.

In the era of martial artists' rise, Yu State also has many armies composed of martial artists, but these armies often fail to exert their proper combat power due to many fundamental shortcomings.

The root cause is simply the lack of a good commander; when two sides engage in battle, martial artists do not know how to coordinate with each other—though called an army, it is in fact merely a collection of independent individuals.

"Yan Yang..."

Tian Rui looked toward the Princess of Yan Yang beside him.

"You decide; no matter where you go, I am willing to follow you."

At this moment, the Princess of Yan Yang is like a virtuous wife, silently supporting her man's every decision.

Tian Rui smiled.

Afterwards, he loosened his grip on the Princess of Yan Yang's hand and bowed solemnly to Fang Xu: "Your subordinate, Tian Rui, pays his respects, Young Master!"

Fang Xu quickly rose to help him up, then said happily: "With General Sha's addition, Fang Xu believes the fame of the Ghost Face Army will be revived."

"Please take a seat, General."

"Please take a seat, Princess."

After the three sat down, Fang Xu looked at the Princess of Yan Yang and said: "Princess, regarding the matter of Xuan Liu Blood Gold..."

The Princess of Yan Yang shook her head: "Young Master, you are likely to be disappointed."

"The method of refining Xuan Liu Blood Gold is known only to the three Tuoba brothers within the entire Tuoba family; now that the three are dead, no one in the Tuoba family knows how to refine Xuan Liu Blood Gold anymore."

Upon hearing this, Fang Xu felt somewhat vexed.

He had not expected the Tuoba family to control the refining method of Xuan Liu Blood Gold so strictly.

Since the refining method of Xuan Liu Blood Gold cannot be obtained, there is no need for me to linger long in Ji Prefecture.

"General Sha, there is one more matter." Fang Xu looked toward Tian Rui and said: "How is the situation in Qing Prefecture now?"

Tian Rui shook his head: "Basically already pacified; the head of the Lu family, Lu Shengren, and some members of the Yanshen Sect have fled."

"Young Master, the Grand General already knows that the Blood Floating Pagoda died at your hands; he and the Blood Floating Pagoda shared deep feelings, so I estimate that once the affairs of Qing Prefecture are settled, the Grand General will come to seek you."

Fang Xu nodded.

This I had already anticipated.

Moreover, it does not matter; with the Old Ape present, as long as it is not Zhao Wujì and Li Cangwu joining forces to attack, it does not matter.

Besides, even if they join forces, the Ascension Immortal Assembly still has Jiang Feng.

He is someone I have personally seen capable of reaching the Yang Spirit Realm.

Fang Xu faintly felt that Jiang Feng's strength would be difficult for Zhao Wujì and Li Cangwu to overcome even if they joined forces.

Lu Shengren's escape is actually quite a troublesome matter.

After this defeat, he surely fled with the Yanshen Sect members from Yu State; if I wish to find him again to take revenge, I fear it will require some effort.

Never mind.

Besides Li Xun, no one added to my friend list has been able to persist for long.

Lu Shengren will surely die sooner or later; we can talk about it then.

The next day.

Fang Xu and the Old Ape led Tian Rui and the three thousand Ghost Face Army toward Zhong Prefecture.

When the group returned to the Ascension Immortal Assembly, Tian Rui and Yan Yang temporarily resided in the mountain-foot villa; as for the Ghost Face Army, they could only set up temporary tents outside the villa, awaiting Fang Xu's next arrangement.

Hall of Law Enforcement, after Fang Xu returned, Chu Ren Di immediately sought him out.

"Master."

After the customary greeting, Fang Xu looked at Chu Ren Di's somewhat strange expression and asked curiously: "Master, what happened?"

Chu Ren Di nodded: "During the time you went to seek revenge, Li Cangwu came twice."

"Oh?"

"What is he doing here?"

Fang Xu asked curiously.

Chu Ren Di smiled faintly: "What can he do?"

"At first, he came to find Master, hoping Master could persuade you to give up revenge."

"The second time, just yesterday, he approached both Master and Senior Brother Jiang, saying you and Old Ape have been slaughtering the top combat power of Yu State recklessly, seriously violating the agreement between the Ascension Immortal Assembly and Yu State, and demanding the Ascension Immortal Assembly hand you over."

Saying this, Chu Ren Di's mouth curled into a cold smile.

"He might have taken on a mission with the Ming Hun Dao people, and since he and Zhao Wuji have already broken through to the Yuan Wu Realm, they now have the strength to rival our Ascension Immortal Assembly."

"Even if the Immortal Island is besieged and no reinforcements can be sent for now, our Yu State Ascension Immortal Assembly branch is not something he can provoke."

Looking at Chu Ren Di's confident face, Fang Xu recalled the scene he saw on the fourteenth layer of the Deng Xian Tai again.

It seems Chu Ren Di should be very familiar with Jiang Feng's strength.

"Alright, just wait peacefully until after the eighteenth of Dong Yue, then follow Senior Brother Jiang to the Immortal Island."

Chu Ren Di waved his hand and didn't take Li Cangwu's warning to heart.

Fang Xu left the Law Enforcement Hall and then went straight to the Divine Armaments Hall.

The armor issue for the three thousand Ghost Face Army is still being resolved; he wanted to see if Tie Shan had any better solution.

Inside the Divine Armaments Hall, Tie Shan was cultivating.

Hearing the disciple's announcement that Fang Xu had come to visit, Tie Shan had someone invite him in.

After Fang Xu stated his purpose, he dumped all the forging materials he had scavenged from various major clans and powers from his Qiankun bag.

"Tie Shan steward, take a look—are these materials enough to forge three thousand sets of armor?"

Seeing the mountain-like pile of materials before him, Tie Shan was dazed.

"You little brat, how many clan treasuries did you loot in just one trip?"

"And there's…… Xuan Liu Blood Gold!?"

Seeing the blood-red flowing light metal among the pile of materials, Tie Shan hastily picked it up.

"This stuff is great!"

"Fang Xu, do you know what another name for Xuan Liu Blood Gold is?"

Fang Xu shook his head.

Tie Shan smiled mysteriously: "Life Metal."

"Xuan Liu Blood Gold is a metal that perfectly fuses with flesh and blood, so in the hands of mechanism puppet masters, it is often used to reattach severed limbs."

Upon hearing this, Fang Xu's gaze turned to Tie Shan's missing leg.

Noticing his gaze, Tie Shan smiled: "Old man isn't unable to obtain Xuan Liu Blood Gold; I just want to remember this lesson."

Saying that, he again picked out many pieces of Xuan Liu Blood Gold from the mountain-like pile of forging materials.

"Still not enough."

Looking at the Xuan Liu Blood Gold before him, Tie Shan shook his head: "If there were enough Xuan Liu Blood Gold, I could forge a completely new set of armor for your three thousand Ghost Face Army."

"But now the amount of Xuan Liu Blood Gold is insufficient, so we can only mix in some other materials."

Fang Xu nodded upon hearing this; the refining technique for Xuan Liu Blood Gold died with the three Tuo Ba brothers, and in the short term he has no way to obtain more.

"By the way, Tie Shan steward, I still have a good thing here!"

Fang Xu thought for a moment, then directly took out a huge beast skin from his Qiankun bag.

The moment the beast skin was taken out, a fierce and brutal aura surged forth!

Tie Shan stared wide-eyed at the beast skin Fang Xu had taken out, his eyes full of shock!

"This…… this is!"

"Yuan Wu Realm…… no!"

"Not just a Yuan Wu Realm great demon!"

"What kind of ferocious beast's skin is this exactly!?"

The beast skin before them is precisely that of the Ni Guang Giant Crocodile.

On the fourth layer of the Ti Lan Shan ruins, Fang Xu killed the Ni Guang Giant Crocodile and stored its skin in his Qiankun bag.

Now is just the time to forge armor for the Ghost Face Army; perhaps it can be used.

"Tie Shan steward, this is the skin of a Yuan Wu Realm great demon."

The cultivation of the Ni Guang Giant Crocodile is that of a great demon, and even in Fang Xu's perception, its aura is much weaker than Old Ape's.

"No!"

"Absolutely not!"

Gazing at the huge crocodile skin before him, Tie Shan shook his head: "The life aura of a great demon absolutely would not be this ancient."

"From the scales on the skin, it can be seen that this great crocodile lived at least ten thousand years!"

"Apart from some special races, no great demon can live this long!"

Fang Xu was puzzled; he had also doubted whether the Ni Guang Giant Crocodile and the Mo Yin Merpeople, as subordinates of the Yan Shen, why they lived so long yet were only great demons.

He speculated that this might be related to the restrictions of the ruins, or perhaps some method of the Yan Shen.

"Tie Shan steward, counting this beast skin, plus the Xuan Liu Blood Gold and these materials, can you forge three thousand sets of armor?"

Tie Shan hesitated, then nodded: "It can be done, but I need your help."

Fang Xu was dazed: "Disciple doesn't know forging."

Tie Shan looked at him and chuckled: "Not knowing can be learned."

Saying that without further ado, he directly dragged Fang Xu to a forging furnace, threw him a hammer, and said: "If you don't help, I dare not guarantee I can finish these armors before you go to the Immortal Island."

Fang Xu helplessly: "Alright."

Seeing him agree, Iron Mountain directly took out his own identity token and handed it to Fang Xu.

"What?" Fang Xu asked curiously.

"Contribution points!" Iron Mountain rolled his eyes at him: "Three thousand sets of armor—are you planning to have me forge them for free?"

Fang Xu scratched his head awkwardly.

Three thousand sets of armor—if he tried to get them for free, it would indeed be a bit excessive.

"One set for one thousand contribution points." Iron Mountain said lightly.

One set for one thousand!?

Three thousand sets would be three million contribution points!?

This is too much of a rip-off!?

"Iron Mountain steward, can't you give a discount?" Fang Xu pleaded.

Three million contribution points—he couldn't come up with that even if beaten to death.

"Eight hundred, the lowest price."

Iron Mountain spoke.

Eight hundred per set—three thousand sets would be two million four hundred thousand contribution points.

Although it's six hundred thousand less, he still couldn't come up with it.

"Can I owe it?" Fang Xu asked again.

Iron Mountain shook his head: "You brat are about to go to Immortal Island—who knows when you'll return, maybe you won't come back in this lifetime."

"If I owe it, who would Old Man go to collect from?"

"How many contribution points do you have now?"

Fang Xu glanced at his identity token, his face bitter: "One hundred thirty thousand."

Iron Mountain thought for a moment and said: "One hundred thirty thousand can be the deposit—go prepare. If you can't raise enough by then, I'll confiscate the armor."

Hearing this, Fang Xu felt that this old coot's talk about contribution points was fake, and he somewhat suspected the man wanted to embezzle his materials and armor.

"Hurry up—once you gather the contribution points, come back to help." Iron Mountain urged.

Fang Xu could only helplessly leave the Divine Armaments Hall.

After hesitating for a moment at the entrance of the Divine Armaments Hall, he immediately headed toward the Hundred Herbs Hall.

His Cosmos Bag still held many precious medicinal herbs collected from the edge of the purification pool on the fourth layer of the ruins.

These items were originally intended to be given together to Chu Mu when he went to Immortal Island, but now it seems he can only sell them first.

"Fang Xu older brother!"

At the thatched hut of the Divine Armaments Hall, seeing Fang Xu arrive, Chu Mu immediately rushed over.

The little girl has now grown into a young woman, her body beginning to develop more maturely.

But she still acts as before—seeing Fang Xu, she throws herself at him without hesitation.

After gently patting her back, Fang Xu said in surprise: "Mu, have you reached the third level of Martial Master?"

Chu Mu lifted her fair chin proudly: "Impressive, right?"

Looking at her, Fang Xu lightly reached out and pinched her jade nose: "Impressive! My Mu is the most impressive!"

Chu Mu blushed with a smile, clinging to Fang Xu's arm and acting coquettishly.

"How's the alchemy going?" Fang Xu asked again.

"Guess!" Chu Mu gave a sly smile.

"Fourth rank?" Fang Xu asked.

The little girl instantly pouted: "Brother, how much do you look down on the Fragrant Sacred Body?"

Hearing this, Fang Xu was somewhat surprised: "Could it be fifth rank?"

Chu Mu nodded firmly: "I've been able to refine fifth-rank pills since three months ago."

"By the way, Brother Fang Xu came to the Hundred Herbs Hall to see me?" Chu Mu asked again.

Fang Xu scratched his nose awkwardly: "I guess so."

"Hmph!"

"You're here to find my master, right?"

"Or Senior Brother Huang?"

Seeing her angry expression, Fang Xu smiled: "I came to see you, and by the way, I have something to discuss with Steward Xu."

Chu Mu seemed to know he's been busy lately, didn't insist on clinging, and immediately led Fang Xu to Xu Changqing's residence.

After meeting, they exchanged pleasantries, and Fang Xu directly said: "Steward Xu, I have some medicinal herbs I wish to sell to you."

Xu Changqing, upon hearing this, became somewhat curious: "What kind of medicinal herbs?"

Fang Xu immediately took out two stalks of the medicinal herbs he had collected beside the purification pool from his Cosmos Bag.

Instantly, medicinal fragrance filled the entire room!

Xu Changqing had originally been calmly stroking his beard, wanting to see what medicinal herbs Fang Xu could produce.

But upon seeing these herbs, his hand couldn't help but tremble, and he directly plucked several strands from the beard beneath his jaw!

However, at this moment he no longer cared about the pain, his eyes fixed tightly on the herbs before him.

Having learned from last time, Fang Xu's collected herbs this time are well-preserved.

"This is……Dragon Scale Grass!?"

Gazing at one stalk of Dragon Scale Grass, Xu Changqing carefully held it in his hands.

Dragon Scale Grass is a fifth-rank medicinal herb; a hundred-year-old stalk grows seven inches tall, has three leaves, each leaf bearing dragon scales, seven scales per leaf, and is a primary ingredient in refining Breaking Calamity Pill.

But the Dragon Scale Grass Fang Xu produced is over one zhang tall—roughly speaking, it has at least over ten leaves, each leaf as long as an arm, completely covered in dense dragon scales!

At this time, Chu Mu was also attracted by this medicinal herb that looked like dragon scale grass.

"Master, does dragon scale grass look like this?"

Xu Changqing carefully observed the dragon scale grass in his hand, and also looked at the fruit at the top.

He dared not confirm whether this was indeed dragon scale grass.

"Mu, take a jade knife and a jade butterfly."

Upon hearing this, Chu Mu quickly brought the jade knife and jade butterfly.

As a result, Xu Changqing carefully cut off a small piece of one leaf of the dragon scale grass with the jade knife.

Immediately, a richer medicinal fragrance appeared!

"It is dragon scale grass!"

"It really is dragon scale grass!"

Smelling this familiar scent, Xu Changqing's excited beard trembled!

As an alchemist, he could determine that the medicinal efficacy of just one leaf of this dragon scale grass was comparable to that of a hundred-year-old ordinary dragon scale grass!

"A hundred-year-old dragon scale grass is seven inches long; this dragon scale grass..."

Xu Changqing could no longer determine its age.

"A priceless treasure, a priceless treasure!"

With trembling hands, Xu Changqing stroked the fruit at the top of the dragon scale grass, becoming even more excited.

Even in ancient texts, he had never seen a record of dragon scale grass bearing fruit.

Based on common sense, the fruit is the essence of a medicinal herb, and this dragon scale grass's fruit absolutely surpasses his imagination!

"Xu steward, how many contribution points do you think this dragon scale grass is worth?"

Fang Xu did not understand medicinal herbs; he only cared now about how many contribution points this dragon scale grass could sell for, and whether it could be enough to forge his armor.

"This is a priceless treasure!"

"Discussing price is an insult to it!"

Xu Changqing said angrily.

Fang Xu pouted: "I want to find Elder Tieshan to forge some things; he demanded two million four hundred thousand contribution points outright."

Upon hearing this, Xu Changqing was stunned: "How much?"

"Two million four hundred thousand." Fang Xu said.

Xu Changqing's body trembled slightly, then he exclaimed angrily: "Is that old bastard gone mad?"

"What thing could be forged to demand two million four hundred thousand contribution points!?"

"The brat even provided the materials." Fang Xu added fuel to the fire.

Now Xu Changqing could not stay calm, cursing angrily: "This old bastard is trying to cheat people!"

"Xu steward, I urgently need contribution points; what do you think..."

Xu Changqing's face looked somewhat embarrassed.

He could not come up with two million four hundred thousand contribution points.

But he absolutely did not want to give up this dragon scale grass of unknown age.

"Fang Xu, these two dragon scale grasses are mine; I will resolve the matter with the Divine Weapon Hall for you, how about that?"

Although he could not come up with the contribution points, he was confident he could resolve the matter with Tieshan.

Anyway, Fang Xu needed contribution points to pay the Divine Weapon Hall's fees.

As long as he could help Fang Xu resolve it, it would be equivalent to him paying the contribution points.

"One stalk!"

"The other stalk I want to give to Mu."

Fang Xu said directly.

"Give it to Mu?" Xu Changqing looked at Chu Mu and said: "Mu is only a fifth-rank alchemist; using this dragon scale grass would be a complete waste..."

"Then it's no trouble for you, steward Xu; waste it if it's wasted." Fang Xu said.

Since rarity determines value, Xu Changqing was obviously not a person skilled in negotiation.

From his various behaviors, Fang Xu could see that this dragon scale grass was something he was determined to obtain, and Xu Changqing would accept any price he set.

"Forget it, forget it!"

"Giving it to Mu is also fine!"

Xu Changqing compromised.

Because if this dragon scale grass is used properly, he might be able to advance further and touch the threshold of a seventh-rank alchemist!

After separating the two dragon scale grasses, giving one to Chu Mu and keeping the other for himself, Fang Xu left the Hundred Herbs Hall.

On the way, he also gave the Qiankun bag he had obtained from Jiang Heping to Chu Mu, and incidentally took out a few herbs from his own Qiankun bag and placed them into the Qiankun bag.

"Fang Xu brother, you still have this many!?"

Seeing Fang Xu take out a few more herbs with a scent almost identical to that of the dragon scale grass, Chu Mu covered her mouth in shock.

Fang Xu said nothing, shoved the Qiankun bag into Chu Mu's hand, and said: "After some time, brother will go to the Immortal Island; the exact time of return is also uncertain."

"These things are for you; I hope that when we meet again, you can surpass steward Xu."

Chu Mu tightly gripped the Qiankun bag in her hand, her eyes full of reluctance.

"It was better back in the days in Maple Forest Town."

"Back then, although it was dangerous, but..."

"Girl, cultivate well; the days ahead are still long." After patting Chu Mu's head, Fang Xu said with a smile.

He did not particularly like the sorrow of parting.

Chu Mu nodded: "I understand, Brother Fang Xu."

After leaving the Hall of Hundred Herbs, Fang Xu went straight to the Hall of Divine Arms to help Tie Shan begin forging those armors.

The days passed one by one, and in the blink of an eye it was the eighteenth day of the winter month.

The new round of disciple recruitment ceremony of the Ascension Immortal Assembly has begun.

This disciple recruitment ceremony exceeded Fang Xu's expectations.

He had thought that with the unstable state of the world, the number of disciples coming to register for the entrance examination would decrease greatly.

But unexpectedly, the number of disciples registering this time was even greater than last time.

After some thought, he finally understood.

In these chaotic times, many martial artists know they cannot withstand the great tide.

Rather than live a life of constant uncertainty, it is better to come to the Ascension Immortal Assembly and try one's luck.

The matter of recruiting disciples does not require his concern; he now only needs to quickly finish forging these armors, then make preparations, and after the ceremony, he can proceed to the Immortal Isle.

(End of Chapter)